Story posted Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Complaint Sparks Alpogianis Probe
By TOM ROBB Journal & Topics Reporter
A Cook County State's Attorney's (CCSA) spokesman confirmed that a complaint has been received and an investigation into newly-elected Village Trustee George Alpogianis' past felony convictions is underway that could lead to his removal from the village board.
The Illinois Officials Convicted of Infamous Crimes Act states, "any person convicted in any court of the State of Illinois or of the United States of a felony, bribery, perjury, or other infamous crime," is not permitted to hold any elected office.
When Alpogianis was elected last April, the State's Attorney spokesman said his office would not seek to remove Alpogianis from office because of felony convictions on his record unless a formal complaint was received.
The spokesman, Andy Conklin, would not say this week who filed the complaint with his office or exactly when it was filed. He said the investigation would be finished within the next two weeks.
Records obtained by the Journal & Topics Newspapers through the Clerk of the Cook County Circuit Court, show felony convictions for Alpogianis in the mid-1980's when he was 17 and 19-years-old. He was charged as an adult.
He pled guilty to six felony counts of aggravated battery stemming from an incident in 1984 and one count of damage to property caused by what was described as a "pipe bomb with black powder" that shattered windows at Wolfy's restaurant in Chicago in 1983.
The damage to property charge was listed as a felony on a court sentencing document signed by Judge Thomas Maloney in 1984 when Alpogianis was sentenced to two years of probation. Currently, however, records in the county's computer system list the act as a misdemeanor.
Though the Journal & Topics obtained extensive original police and court records from the Clerk's Office, no records explained how the charge was changed to state misdemeanor.
Sentencing documents make no mention that any charge should be reduced upon completion of the sentence.
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